As The World Falls Down
by Inwe Calaelen
Summary: Sarah runs away and meets up with the Goblin King. She faces many hardships, including drugs and alcohol. Chapter 17 up.
1. In Search Of New Dreams

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Labyrinth.

**In Search Of New Dreams**

_Sarah Williams scrambled to clean up the mess from her victory party. Solving the Goblin King's labyrinth was not an easy task, yet she had done it. Now, after dancing with the Fire Gang, and several games of Scrabble with Sir Didymus, not to mention solving the Labyrinth in about ten hours, Sarah was exhausted._

_Sensing she was being watched, Sarah turned quickly to the mirror, which seemed to be the only way of communication between the Underground and Aboveground. Sarah was a surprised to find her own reflection staring back. As she remembered Jareth's other form, the fifteen-year-old spun around to look out her window. She couldn't help but glare at the owl perched on the tree right outside her window._

_After gazing fondly, yet sadly, at the girl, the owl flew off. Sarah stood glowering at the spot where it, he, the Goblin King, had sat. She jumped as she heard her father's voice call up from downstairs._

_"Sarah!"_

"Sarah!" Karen, her stepmother called through the girl's bedroom door. "Get up! Your Father and I are going out for the day, and you're going to watch Toby." Karen's voice grew impatient as she said, "I'm not going to tell you again! Get up!"

Sarah groaned inwardly, but responded with, "All right! I'm up!" Turning to look at her alarm clock, Sarah groaned aloud this time. "Six thirty on a Saturday morning and I'm already babysitting," she thought. "It's not fair." She pushed back the blankets and pulled herself out of the bed. Putting on her bathrobe, Sarah trudged out to wave her father and stepmother off.

As soon as her parents had left, Sarah quietly walked into Toby's room. Finding the boy asleep, Sarah began to think about the incident that had occurred almost two years ago. Toby had been almost a year old, and Sarah had been fifteen. She still couldn't believe she had actually wished her brother away. At the same time, she was glad she had. If it hadn't been for Jareth, and her own stupidity, Sarah may never have learned to truly appreciate her baby brother.

Karen, however, was another story. Sarah had tried to get Karen's approval, but nothing she did worked. The woman was insufferable, making Sarah cook, clean, do all the laundry, and anything else Karen didn't want to do herself. Sarah was tired from all the housework Karen gave her. Her stepmother was still upset that Sarah rarely went on dates, but even if Sarah had wanted to go on a date, she had too much work to do. The girl did everything that was asked of her, without ever hearing so much as a simple "Thank you."

To tell the truth, Sarah was fed up with it all. Her father didn't help. Her counselor just told her to try harder. Well, Sarah had tried her hardest. She had done what was expected and more, yet it still wasn't enough. Sarah couldn't handle it anymore. Not even for Toby.

"Tonight," Sarah whispered, kneeling down and kissing the boy's forehead, "I leave for good."

With that, Sarah left Toby's room. She quietly walked back to her own room, only stopping to grab her backpack from the hook in the hall closet. Sarah began packing her bag, tears in her eyes. She didn't pack much, just what she would need. A couple changes of clothes, hairbrush, toothbrush and toothpaste…only the necessities. Then her eyes fell on a small book. It was bound in red leather. Picking it up, she ran her hand over the gold lettering that read _Labyrinth_. Without a second thought, Sarah put the book in her bag.

"Sarah," The girl turned to see her brother standing in the doorway. "I'm hungry."

"All right, Toby," Sarah said. She stood up and scooped Toby up in her arms, "What would you like for breakfast"

"Mickey Mouse Pancakes!" Toby said excitedly. Sarah smiled. Today, she would be extra nice to the boy.

"Hoggle," Sarah said quietly. "I need you." She was seated at her desk, looking at her mirror. Her parents had gone to bed about an hour ago, her bag was completely packed, and she was ready to leave. All that was left to do was to tell her friends she as leaving. Just as she was beginning to think he wouldn't respond, Sarah saw the face of her old friend and smiled.

"Sarah!" Hoggle said, smiling. "What can I do fer ya? Is Karen upsetting ya again?" he asked sincerely.

"No, Hoggle," Sarah replied, fighting back the tears that were threatening to spill. "Not anymore. I'm leaving. Tonight. I'm taking my compact so I can keep in contact with you."

"But, Sarah!" Hoggle said, almost too loud. "It's dangerous out there. Even more than in the Labyrinth. You go running off like that and you're gonna get yourself seriously hurt."

"I'm hurting more here," Sarah said. Her tears won the battle and started sliding down her cheeks. "And I'm leaving." With that, Sarah made her way quietly to Toby's room, leaving Hoggle to his worries.

Quietly opening the door to her brother's room, she saw that the boy was awake. He looked up at her with big eyes. "You leaving?"

Sarah quickly walked in and shut the door to Toby's room. "You heard that?"

"I wanted a nu-night song. You was talking to Hoggle," Toby said, trying hard not to cry. "You come back?"

"Toby," Sarah said soothingly, kneeling down beside the boy's bed. "I'll always come back for you."

"Be caweful. I won't tell Mommy and Daddy." Toby said, hugging his sister.

Sarah returned the hug and quietly left the room. She made her way down the stairs, careful to avoid the squeaky stair, and out into the night.

As he heard the front door close, Toby went to Sarah's room. He opened the door, and seeing Hoggle on the mirror, went to talk to him. "Help Sawah?" He asked the dwarf, raising his teddy bear, Lancelot, to the side of his head.

"I's thought you was listening," the dwarf responded. "How do I help her?"

"Jareth!" Toby said, lowering Lancelot quickly.

Hoggle frowned. "You're probably right. Maybe he'll let me see him, seeing as how you's sent me?"

"Go!" Toby said. "Help Sawah!" At the boy's exclamation, the dwarf left to ask the help of the person who scared him the most – the Goblin King.


	2. I'll Be There For You

**I'll Be There For You**

Jareth, King of the Goblins, sat in his rather noisy throne room, watching the clock. As goblins are not the brightest of creatures, they are highly suggestible. If their king decides to go to bed, the goblins would go off to their own beds. Of course, they'd get worried if Jareth decided to go to bed before ten thirty, Underground Time, and they'd know if he altered the clocks. It was getting increasingly harder to stay put and tough out the last half hour, as Jareth desperately wanted to check on Sarah. He knew she needed him, but didn't know why. He did, however, know it could wait another half hour.

Jareth looked towards the door as he heard a disturbance, as opposed to the usual Goblin noise. He looked to the nearest goblin and said, "Go find out what's going on."

"Yes, my lord," the goblin squeaked, and scurried away. It took him a couple of minutes to return. When he again reached his king, he bowed and said, "My lord, it's the three who helped Lady Sarah through the Labyrinth. They wish to speak with you."

Jareth looked towards the clock again and waved his hand, "Send them away."

"But, my lord," the goblin squeaked. It did not do to contradict the Goblin King. Jareth looked back at the goblin. He really wasn't in the mood to deal with Sarah's friends. "The dwarf says he was sent to see you."

Jareth sighed and replied, "By who?"

"My lord," the goblin said, relieved he wouldn't be kicked for disobeying his king, "By Toby."

Jareth straightened himself up. If Toby had sent him, then there was a good reason for the three creatures' presence. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" The Goblin King asked in an impatient voice. "Send them in. Everyone else, shut up!" Jareth's voice was barely below a yell, and echoed in the silence that followed.

Hoggle entered the room, followed closely by Sir Didymus and Ludo, all three bowing when they reached the Goblin King. Hoggle was the first to speak. "Your majesty," he began, "We's been sent to you by Toby to ask for your help."

"What kind of help?" Jareth asked arrogantly.

When Hoggle faltered, Sir Didymus spoke for him, "My lord, Lady Sarah might be in serious trouble."

"What?" Jareth yelled, standing up. "What kind? How?"

Ludo was the next to speak. "Sarah ran away."

Jareth sat back down, speechless. He put one foot up on the side of his chair, resting his elbow on his knee, and his chin on his hand, thinking.

As Hoggle shuffled his feet, suddenly uneasy with the silence from his king, Ludo suddenly found the floor very fascinating. Sir Didymus was the only one who could find his voice. "My Lord," he said gently, "Toby was most adamant about our coming to you to ask for your assistance."

Jareth chuckled silently. "I doubt those were his words." He sat up straighter and looked at the little fox. "How is Toby doing?" He had watched both Sarah and Toby only occasionally, and Sarah more than Toby.

"He's doing very well. Both his parents and Sarah spoil him," the tiny knight responded.

"He very cute," Ludo added, looking up at Jareth. "He remember Goblin King."

"What Ludo means," Sir Didymus said, "is that he remembered you, my Lord, without Sarah's help."

"His first word was Jareth," Hoggle said, trying to soften the blow from Sarah's absence in the Williams household.

Jareth smiled. "Of course it was," he said arrogantly, "and I'm not surprised Sarah left. I had thought she would try something else, though."

"Like wishing herself Underground, Sire?" Sir Didymus asked quietly.

"Exactly," Jareth responded. "Now leave me, all of you." When the goblins made no movement except to watch the three departing figures, he shouted, "Goblins included." At once, the throne room emptied, save for a fox, a yeti, a dwarf, and a king.

As he was about to step out the door, Ludo turned around, silently bumping into Hoggle and Sir Didymus. "Goblin King help Sarah?" he asked quietly, and the dwarf and fox turned, awaiting the answer from the king.

"I'll leave immediately," Jareth said quietly. Then he did something completely unexpected, and kept as a secret between fox, yeti, dwarf and king. He walked over to the three friends, and, very quietly, said, "Thank you for coming to me." With those words spoken, he conjured a crystal to change himself into an owl, and flew out the window.

Sarah Williams sat in the middle of a dark alley, leaning against a wall, arms resting on her knees, tears streaming down her face. She looked up, frightened, when she heard a rustling noise, tears stopping momentarily. She wiped the tears from her eyes when she saw a large, white owl. The owl tilted its head slightly and hooted gently.

"What are you doing here?" Sarah said angrily. The owl gave sad, quiet hoot. Sarah put her head back in her hands, to hide the tears that had begun spilling again. "I'm sorry Jareth," she said, calmer. "I shouldn't be mad at you, for anything. I asked you to take Toby, and then you gave him back. It's just that I…" Sarah paused and looked up at the owl. "I didn't want you to see me like this. I just… I wish," Sarah began babbling, but her words were drowned out by a clap of thunder. Then the sky opened up and decided to pour down on the two. "Oh, it's not fair," Sarah cried.

The owl flew in a small circle and, in a flash of glitter, turned into the Goblin King. He kneeled down and put his hand out towards Sarah. She looked at his hand, a little confused. "Come with me."

Sarah put her hand in Jareth's and stood up. "All right, Jareth," She said through her tears. "Take me away from this awful place."

Lightning struck and thunder rolled as Jareth pulled Sarah close to him, wrapping his arms around her. He whispered in her ear, "I'll do anything you wish for me to."

Sarah looked up at Jareth and said quietly, "I wish you would take me away." Lightning flashed again, and thunder began to roll, and was suddenly silenced, as everything around the pair turned pitch black.

Sarah felt Jareth remove one of his arms from around her, and four candles were lit. They were standing by a bed with red fabric for the canopy. The blankets were down, and matched the canopy. The four candles that had been lit were suspended in the air, about foot from the bed, two on either side. Jareth waved his hand and Sarah was dressed in a white night gown, completely dry.

"Where are we?" Sarah asked, hugging Jareth.

"Your chambers," the king responded. "My chambers are the next room to the right. Should you need me, I'll be there for you." With that, he kissed Sarah's forehead, and left the room.

Aboveground, in a house in New England, a dwarf tucked a three-year-old boy into bed, a fox and a yeti close by, all three telling him that Jareth had indeed gone to help his sister.


	3. Mornings Of Gold

**Mornings Of Gold**

Sarah Williams awoke the next morning with a bright light shining into her closed eyes. She rolled over to avoid the light, trying to preserve the last few precious moments of sleep. Her eyes opened, however, when she felt a soft hand smooth her hair back from her face.

Being Underground, Sarah expected to meet people who were different than she was used to. She had expected to meet goblins, and fairies, and dwarves, and yetis and foxes. Sarah did not, however, expect to meet a woman like the one before.

The girl had white hair with thick black streaks. Her eyes were golden with green and blue, and looked as though they belonged on a cat. All of the girl's movements were elegant, with almost a cat-like grace. When she spoke, her voice was soft and sounded almost like a purr.

"Good morning, Lady," the girl said, taking a step back and dropping into the most graceful curtsey Sarah had ever seen. "My name is Cattie, and I have been sent to be your handmaid."

Sarah's eyes grew big, and she sat up slowly. "I have a handmaid?"

Cattie smiled, standing up and said, "Handmaid, Lady-in-waiting, servant, whatever you wish to call me I am here to serve you, Lady." Again, the girl dropped down into a graceful curtsey.

"Would you stop doing that?" Sarah asked, almost impatiently.

Cattie looked up, confused. "Am I doing something wrong, Lady?"

Sarah pushed the blankets back and stood up. She gently grabbed the girl's hands, pulling her up and saying, "Stop curtseying and calling me Lady."

Cattie cocked her head to one side, even more confused. "Do you not wish for me to show you the proper respect?"

Sarah smiled and said, "I just don't want you to treat me like I'm superior to you."

"Lady," Cattie said lowly, lowering her eyes, "you _are_ superior to me."

Sarah sighed, releasing Cattie's hands, and said, "I just want us to be friends. That's all I need." Sarah, too, lowered her eyes, "I need a friend. The Underground is a big place, and I don't know the customs and laws. I need a friend to help with that."

Cattie looked at Sarah for a moment, not quite sure what to say. When Sarah raised her eyes to meet Cattie's, she pulled Sarah into a tight hug, barely containing the tears that threatened. Stepping back, Cattie said, "I'll be your friend." Looking at the clock, which hung on the wall next to the bed, she wiped her eyes and added, "We should get you dressed. His Majesty will be expecting your company for breakfast. I'll draw a bath for you."

Watching Cattie walk into the bathroom, Sarah noticed that the door was on the same wall as her bed.


	4. Lost and Lonely

**Lost and Lonely**

The Underground was constantly changing. Everyone knew it. Every mirror that appeared in every creature's sleeping space testified to that fact. At all times, the constant shift of the ancient magics could be felt.

In the South, the Witches and Vampires felt their magic change as they battled the Wizards and Werewolves. In the East, the Trolls, Yetis and Gnomes tried desperately to keep their tempers in check as the shifting magic caused turmoil within their minds.

In the North, the Goblin and Pixie Kings and the Fairy and Dwarf Queen were kept busy tending to their mischievous followers, even more so now that they could feel the magic moving. The Canines and Felines tried in desperation to calm the anxious monarchs they served. In the West, the Dryads and the Merfolk stopped complaining about each other's morals and looked to each other for help handling the problem that came with the change in magic.

All over the Underground, all eyes turned to the High Kingdom, the Elvish Kingdom. The High King's eyes were the only to move elsewhere, focusing on a young maiden on the borders of the Underground, the only creature who had not looked to him. The only female in the Underground he trusted as the Goblin King's wife. The only creature in the Underground who did not know who he was.

Sarah sat on her sofa, staring at her mirrors. She had accumulated a couple more mirrors. One was shaped like a bird and was showing the time when the sparrow-like bird had landed on Sarah's bed and sat like he was reading the book in front of her. The other was shaped like another cat and showed the man she had met on her first morning in the Underground.

All of the mirrors rotated around the sphere in the center of her room. Though, she was a little confused as to what the man had to do with anything. She'd have to ask Cattie.

Had she been Aboveground, Sarah would have watched TV or played with Toby. Being Underground, the girl could do neither. If it had been any other time, Sarah would have done something with Cattie. However, the maid was currently putting her son to bed. There was only one other person Sarah knew well enough in castle to actually do something.

Standing up almost too quickly, Sarah walked out of her room and knocked on the door across from hers. When there was no answer, she knocked again and called through the door, "Jareth?"

Receiving no reply, Sarah decided to search for her king. She looked in his study, the gardens and got herself terribly lost wandering the halls. At this point Sarah just wanted to see some sign that there were still living creatures in the castle.

Turning yet another corner, Sarah came to a dead end. Or what would have been a dead end had it not been for the door.

Opening said door, Sarah nearly cried at the sight she saw. She had found the kitchen. There were pots, pans and cauldrons of every size. The ovens were enormous. Various kitchen tools were strewn about. In the very middle of every thing, on a tiny stool, disproportionate to the rest of the kitchen, stood a small goblin.

As Sarah entered the kitchen, the goblin turned and smiled. Jumping down and running over to greet the lady, the goblin squeaked, "Lady Sarah." The goblin bowed low, "Burnie is glad to be meeting Lady Sarah. Burnie has heard a lot of things from other goblins."

"Burnie?" Sarah asked. "Is that your name?"

"Burnie is Burnie's name," the little goblin squeaked, standing up, "because Burnie was always meant to work in Goblin King's kitchens. Can Burnie get anything for Lady Sarah?"

Sarah looked around quickly, then back at the goblin. "I'm kind of thirsty."

The goblin smiled and said, "Let Burnie make Lady Sarah a martini. Burnie has read about these drinks in books about food from Lady Sarah's land."

"Oh," Sarah said, "am I allowed to drink alcohol?"

"Lady Sarah can drink whatever Lady Sarah wants," the goblin replied, gathering the supplies to make the drink. "Sit, Lady Sarah. At the table. Just over there."

Sarah sat down at the table Burnie had pointed to. "Tell me about the Underground," she said quietly.

"What does Lady Sarah want to know?" Burnie asked, placing the drink in front of her.

"Are there other kingdoms?" Sarah said, taking a sip of the drink.

The goblin laughed at the face Sarah made from her first taste of alcohol. "There be many other kingdoms. Fairy Princess, Pixie King, Dryad Queen and Wizard Prince are Goblin King's closest friends. Elves don't always like Goblins. Witches and Vampires are always fighting Wizards and Werewolves. Dwarves and Fairies are fighting now. Trolls upset Yetis. Merfolk don't like Dryads morals, and Dryads don't like Merfolk's morals. Canines serve royalty while Felines serve opposing royalty. Gnomes and Pixies start fighting soon, Burnie thinks."

"Wow," Sarah said, daring to take another small sip. "That's a lot of kingdoms. It makes you feel really small. How does everyone keep from fighting too much?"

Burnie laughed again, replying, "Elf King is High King. High King controls Underground magic. High King can give more power and take power away."

Sarah looked straight at Burnie, suddenly concerned. "You said that Elves don't always like Goblins. Does the High King ever take power away from Jareth?"

"Oh, no," Burnie said seriously. "High King likes Goblin King. High King wants Goblin King to find good lady to marry. Elves would like Goblins always if Goblin King were married."

"Why?" Sarah asked, confused.

"Goblin King doesn't always understand what other royalty feels," the goblin responded, pouring more into Sarah's glass. "Elves get upset with Goblins because Goblins like mischief. If Goblin King were married, Goblin King would not be as mischievous."

Sarah laughed, "I highly doubt that."

Jareth walked through the castle, looking for Sarah. It was only when he heard Sarah laugh that he stopped his brisk walk. Opening the door to his right, he sighed in relief. Sarah sat at a table drinking a clear liquid, talking with Burnie and laughing.

"Sarah," Jareth said, startling both girl and goblin. "What are you doing?"

"Drinking martinis and talking with this fine fellow," Sarah said as though it were obvious, words slurring a bit.

"I think you've had enough to drink," Jareth said, walking forward and taking the glass out of Sarah's hand just as she was about to take another drink.

"Jarry," Sarah whined, swaying, "just let me finish this one."

Jareth grabbed Sarah's hands and pulled her up. With a thought, he transported Sarah and himself to her room, startling Cattie, who had been starring at a mirror Sarah had never seen before.

"My Lord," Cattie said nervously, dropping into a curtsey. Coming back up she said, "Lady, I was worried about you."

The only response was for Sarah to plop herself onto the sofa.

"We were all worried about you," came a voice Sarah recognized only slightly. The man from her first morning Underground stood at the Bedroom door. "My wife and I put our son to bed and came back to help you, My Lady," he said, then turned to Jareth, "and you, My Lord." Turning back to Sarah, he added, "My darling Cattie was frantic when she could not find you. Even more so when your newest mirror appeared."

Sarah looked up at the new mirror. It was shaped like a martini glass and showed Sarah talking and drinking with Burnie. "Wait, so, you two are married?" Sarah asked, motioning between the two.

Cattie sat down next to Sarah, as Jareth ran a hand through his hair. "That's not the issue here, Lady," Cattie said quietly, brushing the hair out of Sarah's face. "Your new mirror appeared, which means something huge happened while you were drinking and talking to the goblin."

"Yeah," Sarah said, leaning back, "I made a new friend." She giggled then and added, " An' Jarry wouldn't let me finish my drink. Silly Jarry." The last two words came out as a sigh, causing the Goblin King and his two most faithful Feline servants to exchange glances.

"Let's get you to bed," Jareth said, pulling Sarah up. Cattie and her husband pulled back the blankets on Sarah's bed, as Jareth changed Sarah into her nightgown with a wave of his hand.

"What's your name?" Sarah asked Cattie's husband as Jareth laid her down, pulling the blankets up to her arms.

"Llewellyn, My Lady," the feline answered with a bow.

Jareth kissed Sarah on the forehead, and whispered, "Pleasant dreams, Dearest."

As he started to walk away, Sarah caught his wrist. Look up at him with huge eyes, she whispered, "Stay with me tonight."

Cattie and Llewellyn exchanged a smirk before bowing out of the room. Jareth looked at Sarah for a minute before extinguishing the candles and lying down next to Sarah, not looking forward to the headache he knew Sarah would have in the morning.

As the Goblin King fell asleep, two mirrors appeared, exactly identical, in the shape of a heart depicting the king and his love both fast asleep. One was in Sarah's room, the other in Jareth's.

In the very middle of the Underground, the High King looked away from the image that showed the Goblin King and the Lady Sarah. Smiling, he kissed his wife and whispered, "I love you, My Dear."


	5. Nothing Ever Hurts Again

**Nothing Ever Hurts Again**

At the knock that came on her door, Sarah Williams climbed out of her bed. The candles spread about her room all lit as her foot touched the floor. Opening her bedroom door, Sarah was surprised to find Llewellyn standing in the hall.

"My lady," he said, bowing, "My wife is unable to assist you today. She asked that is assist you in any way that I might be able to."

"Oh," Sarah said, stepping back and opening the door for the Feline. "Come in."

Llewellyn entered, immediately opening the thicker of the two sets of curtains. Sunlight filtered into the room, and the candles went.

Sarah stood with her hand to head, regretting having the third martini before going to bed. Yet, at the same time, she wanted another.

Llewellyn turned toward Sarah, noticing the look of discomfort on her face. "My Lady," he asked, a look of concern on his face, "Are you alright?"

Sarah nodded, lowering her hand. "I'm fine, Llewellyn. I just need a bath and a martini."

Llewellyn nodded, waving his hand. A martini appeared, floating in midair. As the Feline walked into the bathroom to draw a bath for Sarah, he made a mental note to warn his wife of the girl's growing alcohol problem, concern never leaving his face.

Sarah walked in behind Llewellyn, this being her first chance to really talk to him. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything, My Lady," Llewellyn responded.

"What do you do here?" Sarah took a sip of her martini, watching the graceful Feline working the many faucets.

"I serve His Majesty, performing the same tasks as my wife performs for you." Llewellyn turned to face Sarah. "If it's not too bold, My Lady," Llewellyn said, lowering his eyes, "Cattie is worried about you."

"Why?" Sarah asked, tipping her head to the side slightly.

Llewellyn glanced up at Sarah before looking back at the water. "She's worried that your drinking might affect you," he answered, quietly. When Sarah didn't respond, the Feline looked up at the girl. Seeing the contemplative look on her face, he dared to ask, "Why do you drink?"

Sarah smiled sadly. "If I drink enough, I can't feel any pain."

Llewellyn blinked a couple of times, before taking Sarah in his arms, stroking her hair. "It's no wonder His Majesty fell in love with you."

Sarah looked up, confused, "Why?"

"You've made any male that you've come into contact with in the Underground want to protect you."

The two stood that way for a moment, Sarah glad to have a male there when she felt so helpless, Llewellyn wanting to do everything in his power to protect the girl. "Llewellyn?" Sarah asked after a time. Llewellyn stepped back to look at her. "Jareth's probably wondering where you are."

Llewellyn nodded, turned the faucets off, and left Sarah to her thoughts.


	6. A Thing Like That

**A Thing Like That**

Llewellyn Timalus walked through the castle of the Goblin King, rather quickly on the verge of panic. The Feline had gone back to Sarah's room to find her gone, with no sign as to where the girl had ventured off to. The Goblin King himself had not been able to find her as of yet.

The Feline searched the gardens, looked in the Throne Room, ran through the Escher Room, and checked back in the lady's rooms. Figuring that Sarah had probably gotten hungry by this time, and remembering the conversation that had taken place that morning, Llewellyn decided it might be wise to look in the kitchens.

Llewellyn quickened his pace to a slight run. Turning a corner, he smacked into his wife, knocking both Felines backwards and onto the floor. Llewellyn shook his head and looked up at Cattie. "My pet," he said gently, "should you not be with our son?"

The darker Feline stood up, dusting himself off, and helped his wife up. "Dearest," Cattie responded, brushing herself off as well, "I came to help search for Lady. Quillan will be fin on his own until we find her."

Husband and wife stared at each other a moment, neither willing to relent. Llewellyn was the first to look away, touching his wife's arm. "I was on my way to look in the kitchens just now."

Cattie grabbed her husband to stop him, her face showing the extreme unease building inside of her. "Lady didn't ask for a martini this morning, did she?"

Llewellyn regarded his wife silently, nodding his head, concern also showing on his face. "We'd better hurry," the lighter Feline said, barely keeping her voice from breaking. Grabbing her husband's hand, running towards the kitchens. "Lady has been having more and more of those lately, and I'm trying to keep her from drinking before the thirteenth hour."

"Cattie," Llewellyn said, regret evident in his voice, "I'm sorry. I… I didn't know."

"I should have warned you," Cattie said, voice finally breaking. Reaching the kitchen door, Cattie released the grip she had on Llewellyn's hand, pushing the door open with a force that only a mother could possess.

"Cattie!" Sarah exclaimed, trying and failing, to stand. "I thought you was staying with your son. He's sick?" she added, words slurring.

"He is, Lady," Cattie said stepping into the kitchen, blue and green eyes scanning for the goblin who had dared give Sarah alcohol. "I came to look for you."

Llewellyn followed his wife, trying not to get too close at hearing the anger in her voice. "Lady Sarah," he asked gently, "how many drinks have you had this morning?"

Cattie, finally finding the Goblin she knew to be Burnie, pointed and yelled, "YOU!"

The Goblin squeaked, and dove for cover. Not fast enough, however, as Cattie picked the tiny goblin up by his shirt and held him against the wall. Llewellyn backed away from his wife even more. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO GIVE DRINKS TO HER BEFORE THE THIRTEENTH HOUR!" Cattie bellowed.

"I…I…I" the goblin couldn't either think of the words to say, or form the words, or both.

"Sarah," said a voice from the doorway, "just how many drinks _have_ you had this morning?" Everyone in the room quivered from the anger apparent in the steady voice. Everyone, that is, but Sarah and Cattie.

Turning to face the Goblin King, Sarah said, "Hi, Jarry!" She stood up, succeeding this time, and bounced over to greet the Fae.

"Answer my question, Sarah," Jareth said, wrapping one arm around the girl and keeping the other hand balled into a fist and pressed firmly against his hip.

"Only four," Sarah said, looking up at the Fae that could strike fear into the bravest of men. "Not including the one Llewellyn gave me this morning."

Keeping the small goblin pressed up against the wall, Cattie rounded on her husband. "YOU DID WHAT?"

Whimpering slightly, Llewellyn inched towards Jareth, now convinced that the Goblin King's wrath could not be as bad as his wife's. "I said I was sorry."

Jareth smirked, and said in an even voice, "Burnie Fairton, had I reached you first, I would have been forced to suspend you head first into the Bog of Eternal Stench. However, I do not feel that my punishment will be as fitting as the punishment you are about to receive. As for you, Llewellyn, my most trusted servant, if you do not make it through the night I will miss you greatly and promise to look after your son as you would have."

Burnie tried to swallow, but his throat would not let him. Llewellyn paled considerably, hardly daring to breathe. Sarah looked up at the Fae she was growing closer to everyday and said in a teasing whisper, "Oh, Jarry, that's not nice."

Jareth looked down at Sarah with an expression that clearly said '_you are in very serious trouble.'_ Sarah quieted, the teasing smile falling from her face.

With a thought, Jareth transported Sarah and himself to the Escher Room, leaving behind an extremely angry Feline to deal with the kitchen goblins and her husband, all of which were wishing the Goblin King had punished them himself.

Sarah looked around quickly, and immediately wished she hadn't. Her head was spinning, and the many different staircases were definitely not helping, especially the ones set at awkward angles that defied the laws of gravity and physics.

Looking back up at Jareth, Sarah asked quietly, "What are we doing here?"

Jareth released the girl and sat down in the very middle of the room, on the floor, or ceiling, or sidewall, depending on which staircase you were standing on, he pulled Sarah down by her hands. She sat facing him quietly, gently holding his hands; waiting for the anger she knew would come.

"I didn't want to be found right away," Jareth said. "I wanted some place the two of us could talk without being bothered. As this room bothers most of the Goblins, I don't expect we shall be found immediately."

Sarah lowered her eyes. "I'm sorry for drinking so much, Jareth," she began, feeling she owed the Fae and explanation. "I get bored and depressed."

"That's no excuse, Sarah," Jareth countered. "If you're bored, or upset, or depressed, or whatever, come and find me. It shouldn't be too hard." Pulling the girl into his lag, the Goblin King added, "Precious, every time you decide to have another drink your hurting yourself. When you hurt yourself, you hurt me."

Sarah slowly wiped away the tears that ran down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Jareth. I just want all the pain to leave. I want to feel like I have some importance."

Jareth frowned and tightened his grip on the girl. "You are important…"

"But I don't feel important," Sarah interrupted.

"And drinking makes you feel important?" Jareth countered.

"No," Sarah said quietly. "Drinking makes it so I don't feel anything."

"Oh, Sarah," Jareth said sadly, pressing his lips to her forehead. "I promise you things will get better. Just trust me, love me. You'll see. I can make everything better for you. And," he added, "You won't need alcohol for it."

"Sarah looked up at Jareth, still wiping her cheeks. "Really?"

Jareth smiled, "Really really."

The two sat still for a moment before Sarah said, "Just don't try to get my attention with fruit." Looking up at him seriously she added, "I used to love peaches."

Jareth laughed, and two lapsed into a much appreciated silence, simply enjoying each other's company.


	7. Hurts Like Hell

**Hurts Like Hell**

Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus stood in the center of the throne room, surrounded by yelling Goblins. The three stood in a circle, backs to each other, facing the Goblins. Each of Sarah's friends was trying desperately to calm down the Goblins before them.

"Ain't no use yelling about it," Hoggle said to the closest Goblin.

"I'm certain that His Majesty will return with Lady Sarah shortly," Sir Didymus shouted to his group of Goblins.

"Sarah need break. King help Sarah," Ludo tried to reason with the angry Goblins.

"This ain't working," Hoggle shouted, backing up so his friends could hear him.

"Have you a better idea?" Sir Didymus questioned, not taking his of the screaming Goblins.

"I'm out," Hoggle shouted back.

"Send Goblins search," Ludo shouted over his shoulder.

The Goblins closest to him started up a chant. Soon, the entire room was echoing with one word, "Search!"

The three brothers covered their ears as the noise increased. "Sorry," Ludo shouted.

"It's a good idea," Hoggle shouted back. "Besides, listen to 'em. What choice 'ave we got?"

Sir Didymus nodded. "We can only do this if the Goblins are quiet," he shouted, voice rising in volume until it was just below a scream. As soon as the small knight said the word 'quiet,' the room was instantly silent. "That's better," the fox said in a normal voice as the three friends lowered their hands. "Now, My Brothers, I suggest we split the Goblins into several search-parties and send them out."

"Before they start chanting again," Hoggle added.

The three friends immediately set to work, dividing the Goblins and sending them to various corners of the Labyrinth. As Hoggle sent the last search-party out, he turned to his friends, looking specifically at Ludo. "Tha' was a good idea."

"I agree," Sir Didymus said, also turning to Ludo.

Ludo looked at the floor. The others would swear, much later, that he was blushing beneath all his fur. "We look for King and Sarah now," he said quietly.

Just then, the trio heard two sets of footsteps running towards the throne room. The three looked in the direction of the sound hopefully. They had to fight hard to hide their disappointment when it was not Sarah and Jareth, but Cattie and Llewellyn who came through the door.

"Cattie," Sir Didymus said, "should you not be home with your son?"

Cattie frowned. "I put him to bed already, Sir Didymus," she responded. "Burnie is watching him."

"After what he did this morning, you trust him with your son," Hoggle said incredulously.

Cattie's frowned deepened. In an effort to calm his wife and Sarah's friends, Llewellyn spoke up. "I'm pretty sure Burnie is trustworthy. My darling Cattie scared the both of us too much for either of us to mess up again for quiet some time."

Cattie laughed, hugging her husband, "You deserved it."

"We did," Llewellyn agreed. Wrapping his arms around his wife, he placed a gentle kiss on her cheek.

"Cattie?" Ludo asked. "Llewellyn?"

"Yes, Ludo?" Cattie questioned.

"Know where we find Sarah?" Ludo asked. Llewellyn marveled silently at how well the Yeti was learning to speak English.

"We were hoping you would know," Llewellyn answered, releasing his wife. The smiles on both Felines vanished as the three friends slowly shook their heads.

"Check mirrors?" Ludo asked.

"We checked a couple of hours ago," Cattie responded.

"Come," Sir Didymus said, walking towards the door Cattie and Llewellyn had come through. "Let's go check them again."

The Feline couple looked over at the Yeti and the Dwarf, who both shrugged and followed the Fox. Hoggle stopped and turned to face Cattie and Llewellyn. "We might as well look together. It wouldn't do to loose each other, too."

"You're right," Cattie said, and looked at her husband. He nodded and the two Felines followed Sarah's closest friends.

In another Kingdom, in the middle of the Underground, the High King put a hand to his eyes. "Problem, My Love?" the High Queen asked.

Lowering his hand, the Elf responded, "No, Darling." At the look he received from his wife, King Elvin, King of the Elves and High King of the Underground added, "The Goblin King's mortal is going to cause some problems before relenting."

The High Queen nodded. "At least we know the Goblin Kingdom loves her. That counts for something."


	8. Shows What You Know

Shows What You Know 

"Precious," Jareth said gently, rolling onto his side and rubbing Sarah's back with his right hand, "aren't you hungry." Sarah glanced over at the king, not moving anything but her eyes, and shook her head.

The two lay in the middle of the Escher room, neither wanting to leave yet both knowing that, sooner or later, they would have to.

"No," Sarah said softly. "I just want to lay here with you." The girl nested up against Jareth and buried her head in his chest. "Cattie's not going to be happy with me."

Jareth couldn't help but laugh, "But, Precious," he said, stroking Sarah's hair, "staying her longer will only make Cattie more upset. Besides, we've been here all day," Sarah looked up at these words. Jareth smiled down at her. "Sir Didymus will have called out the guard by now."

Sarah laughed. "Unless Cattie beat him to it. I didn't know she could be so scary."

Jareth laughed and sat up, pulling Sarah into his lap for the fifteenth time that day. It was quickly becoming his favorite position. He was beginning to like this even more then when he sat on his throne, legs draped over the side.

As Hoggle walked, once again, into the throne room, he stopped mid-step, causing all that were following him to run into each other. Pinking themselves up, Cattie hissed, "What is it Hoggle?"

Hoggle looked at her, confusion showing on his face, and said, " I's thought I heard Sarah's laugh."

Sir Didymus looked incredulous, "Is our Fair Maiden in this room?" Hoggle shook his head.

Llewellyn exchanged glances with his wife, eyes shining, and said, "The Escher Room." Cattie nodded and stepped aside to let him through.

It was Sir Didymus and Hoggle's turn to exchange glances, this time confused, when Llewellyn led the way. Stalking across the throne room soundlessly, the Feline reached the door where Sarah had left Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus on her first visit to the Underground and motioned for the others to follow.

Cattie shook her head, smiling, and whispered, "His Panther side is taking over."

The other three nodded knowingly, following the misplaced Feline. As the five creatures walked up the stairs, Hoggle could feel his anger growing.

With every step, the band could hear more clearly Jareth's loving words, which he spoke softly to Sarah. And with every word, Hoggle could feel his blood rising, until finally, when the group walked into the Escher Room, it was all the Dwarf could do to keep from lunging at Jareth.

Sensing that his brother was feeling a bit…upset; Sir Didymus spoke up, attracting Jareth and Sarah's attention. "Sire," he said with a sidelong glance at Hoggle, "we have been searching all the day for you and Lady Sarah."

"We get worried," Ludo added, placing a hand on Hoggle's shoulder in hopes of calming the irate dwarf.

Cattie and Llewellyn exchanged quick glances at the actions of their companions then rushed forward to help their Lord and Lady from the ground.

Jareth held onto Sarah firmly with one am, raising the other hand to rub his eyes. "If we had wanted to be found," he said, looking up at the two Felines, not even bothering with the other three, "we would have stayed in a place where we could have been easily found."

Hoggle couldn't handle it anymore. "You just wants to control Sarah," he shouted, walking forward and pointing at Jareth. "You don' really care about her."

"I warn you, Dwarf," Jareth said, nudging Sarah gently off his lap and standing gracefully, "don't defy me. I have been generous to all of you, but I can be cruel."

Sarah stayed where she was on the ground, hugging her legs to her chest. The girl didn't like where this was going, but didn't quite know how to stop the argument. Cattie sat down next Sarah wrapping one arm around the girl's shoulders and placing the other hand on her shoulder.

"My Brother," Sir Didymus warned quietly, "perhaps now is not the time."

"Now is as good a time as any," Hoggle shouted at the fox. Turning to Jareth he pointed at Sarah and yelled, "Look at her. Do you honestly think you're helping her?"

"I am not to be trifled with," Jareth said, anger pouring out into his voice. Everyone in the room, save for Hoggle, flinched, as he raised a hand to quiet the dwarf.

Lowering his arm and clenching both hands into fists, Hoggle walked forward even more, "You don' know how to help her. You don' know what she needs."

"And I suppose you do?" Jareth questioned. The two began circling each other. Ludo backed up against a wall. Llewellyn grabbed Sir Didymus and he, too backed up against a wall, holding the tiny knight firmly. Sarah raised her hands to her eyes, clenching her eyes shut as Cattie tightened her grip.

"I knows more about Sarah than you do," Hoggle shouted.

"What do you know?" Jareth said, voice rising in volume.

"Stop it," Sarah whispered. No one heard.

"I KNOW THAT BECAUSE OF YOU SHE DON'T LIKE PEACHES ANYMORE," Hoggle shouted. "I KNOW THAT BECAUSE OF YOU SHE DIN'T TRUST NO ONE WITH TOBY. I KNOW THAT WHA' SHE NEEDS NOW IS SOMONE SHE CAN TRUST."

"Stop fighting. Stop fighting. Stop fighting," Sarah whispered over and over, eyes clenched shut, shaking her head, and making fists out of the hands that were still covering her ears.

"Someone she can trust to lead her into a trap and leave her stranded?" Jareth said loudly, eyes flashing.

"AT LEAS' _I_ DON' NEED MAGIC TO GET HER TO LIKE ME," Hoggle shouted, gesturing wildly.

Jareth raised his hand, a crystal appearing. Everyone that saw it gasped and backed up further. "YOU GO TOO FAR, DWARF," the Goblin King shouted. He pulled his hand back to throw the crystal at the offending dwarf and send him to an obscure oubliette.

"STOP FIGHTING," Sarah screamed at a pitch and volume that only the High King knew her capable of, standing quickly and pushing Cattie off of her. Silence fell upon the room as the Dwarf and the Goblin King regarded Sarah, both regretting what had been said.

Not able to take anymore, Sarah ran out the door. Cattie, Jareth and Hoggle went to follow her. "Let her go," Llewellyn said quietly. "Right now, she needs to be alone."


	9. Do You Want It

**Do You Want It?**

Jareth, King of the Goblins, sat in Sarah's room, watching the sun begin to set, waiting for the girl to return. Llewellyn and Cattie sat close by, talking quietly.

After Sarah had run off, the Felines had gone to check on Quillan, who had "miraculously healed" as children are wont to do, while Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus followed the girl to keep her out of trouble. Leaving his wife to lecture their son, Llewellyn had practically forced a small meal down Jareth's throat. Hoping that Sarah would have come back, the two males had gone to Sarah's bedroom, only to find Cattie waiting for her return.

"Cattie," Jareth said, turning to face the Feline.

"Yes, Your Grace?" Cattie asked, standing.

"I'm going to go look for Sarah. I expect to be informed the minute she returns." Cattie curtseyed her consent. Turning to the darker Feline, Jareth added, "Llewellyn, you may do as you wish."

"Sire," Llewellyn responded, "I think I will stay with my wife. She'll go mad by herself."

"Very well," Jareth said and left to search the Labyrinth, cursing himself for teaching the girl to block Fae magic.

At that very moment, Sarah was walking down a hedge-grown path of the Labyrinth, marveling at how much like the spot Sarah had first met Ludo this area looked.

Turning a corner, Sarah bumped into a small boy, a little smaller than Toby. He had orange-blonde hair with black spots, and his eyes were like liquid gold. The boy looked up at her and smiled. Sarah blinked a couple of times, then bent down to talk to the boy. "I'm a sorry," she said gently.

"Tha's aright," the boy said. "I know who you are," he added.

"And who am I?" Sarah asked, knowing full well the boy would know her. It seemed everyone she met knew her as the Goblin King's Mortal.

"My mommy helps you," the boy said, grinning. "You're Sarah. I'm Quillan, by the way."

"Quillan?" Sarah asked, standing up. "I thought you were sick today."

"I was," Quillan said, stepping forward and grabbing Sarah's hand with both of his, "but we heal fast in the Underground." Pulling backwards on Sarah's hand, he added, "Come on. Mommy and Daddy want to see you, okay?"

Sarah smiled, liking the boy more and more with every second that passed. Maybe it was because the small Feline reminded her so much of Toby. "Your parents didn't send you out to look for me, did they?"

"No," the boy said, releasing Sarah's hand and walking behind to try and push the girl. "I wanted to find you so Mommy wouldn't be so mad at me."

"Quillan," Sarah said, turning around and touching the boy's shoulders, "I'm not ready to go back to the castle."

"Okay," Quillan said, pulling on her hand again. "Then let's go for a walk."

"Let's do that," Sarah said, finally moving to follow the boy. Holding onto his hand, Sarah followed Quillan around a corner and into a forest. "How old are you?" Sarah asked.

"Mommy says that I'm about the same age as your brother," Quillan said, turning so that he walking backwards.

"I'm sure she's alright," Llewellyn told his wife, rubbing her back with one hand. Looking up at Sarah's mirrors, he added, "I'm positive she's alright."

Hearing the change in husband's voice, Cattie followed Llewellyn's eyes. At first, the lighter Feline wasn't sure what had caused he change. Looking over the mirrors her eyes paused when she saw the third cat-shaped mirror. The mirror showed Quillan and Sarah, walking down the hedge-grown path, hand-in-hand. "Should we tell His Majesty?" she asked.

"Let's wait a little while longer. I want to see if anything else happens," Llewellyn answered. Cattie nodded, eyes never leaving the mirror that showed her Lady and her son.

"Quillan," Sarah asked, looking around, "where are we?"

Quillan looked up at her, golden eyes full of fear. "I don't know. I think we're in the bad place."

Sarah bent down and picked up the boy, holding him close for comfort, more hers than his. "What do you mean, 'the bad place'?"

Quillan wrapped his arms around the girl's neck. "The place where the bad things live," he whispered.

Stopping walking for a moment, Sarah looked down at Quillan, perched on her hip, and asked quietly, "What's the bad things?"

Quillan looked beyond the girl and pointed, "They are."

Sarah turned quickly, holding Quillan protectively. The boy held onto Sarah just as tightly, turning his head away from the creatures that were sitting around a fire a few feet away. It took Sarah a few moments to realize just who these creatures were. When she did, she smiled, putting the boy down, and said, "It's okay, Quillan." The boy hid behind her. "It's just the Fire Gang."

One of the red and gold creatures looked up and, seeing Sarah, waved and called, "Hey, Lady."

Sarah waved back and started to walk towards the Fireys. Quillan caught her hand and said, "Sarah! It's the bad things!"

Sarah knelt down, putting a hand on Quillan's shoulder. "I won't let them hurt you, alright?" The boy nodded. "Okay, come on." She picked up the boy and walked over to the most mischievous of her Underground friends.

"Hi, guys," she said. "It's been a while."

"Sit down with us," the Firey nearest to her said, patting the log next to him. The girl sat down on the log, Quillan in her lap.

"Lady," the Firey that had first seen her said, "we heard you had come to stay in the Underground with the King."

"We thought you didn't like him," another Firey said.

"Yeah, so what you doing with him?" the Firey next to her asked.

Sarah proceeded to tell the Fire Gang all about Karen, her father and her decision to come Underground.

"There's another new mirror," Cattie said pointing to the tree shaped object.

"Who are they sitting with?" Llewellyn asked, indicating the red and gold creatures that Sarah and his son were talking with. Both Felines squinted, trying to figure out just what the creatures were.

Realization dawned on the couple at the same time. They turned to face each other slowly, dread showing on both faces. After a moment of silent communication, the Felines ran out the door and across the hall, straight into Jareth's room.

The King stood up quickly from where the chair he sat in, looking through the Labyrinth with a crystal. All three were quiet for a second, the Felines not sure how to tell Jareth what they had seen. "She's returned?" The Goblin King asked, hardly daring to breathe.

Cattie shook her head slowly. Llewellyn said, "She's with Quillan…"

"Then you know about where she is?" Jareth asked, hardly daring to hope.

The Felines exchanged a glance, paling considerably. Cattie's skin tone almost matched her hair color. "She's with the Fire Gang."

A small goblin walking down the hall was startled by a yell coming from his King's room that said, "SHE'S WITH WHO?" A second later, the two Felines that served Jareth and Sarah came crashing through the door and into Sarah's room, followed closely by the King himself, anger radiating from deep inside him.

"People like your step-mother need to lighten up. Especially mortals. They're lives are too short to be so serious," the Firey sitting next to Sarah and Quillan said.

"So this is Toby?" The first Firey said.

"No," Sarah said, smiling down at the boy. "This is my maid's son."

The leader of the Fire Gang, the one who had been sitting next to the girl and the boy, stood up and said, "We like you, Lady. So we're gonna give you something to help ya feel better." He handed her some slips of paper, about the size of postage stamps.

Sarah hesitated before taking the slips from the Firey, much to Quillan's dismay. "Thank you,' Sarah said, unsure what to do with them.

The Fire Gang burst into laughter. "Just lick 'em," one of the Fireys said.

"But not more than one at a time…" another Firey chimed in.

"…Or you'll lose your head," The Fire Gang said in unison.

Quillan stood up, and grabbed Sarah's hand. "We have to go."

"Alright," Sarah said, standing. "I'll see you guys around, and thanks again."

"Bye Lady," the Fire Gang called after her.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Sarah asked the boy as they left the forest.

"You have no idea," the boy replied, leading her towards the castle.


	10. Makes No Sense For You

**Makes No Sense For You**

Quillan Timalus turned around for the fifth time, checking to make sure Sarah was following him. "Come on, Sarah," he called. "We have to go find Mommy and Daddy."

Sarah called back, "I don't want to go back to the Castle yet." She sat down against a wall, watching the sun sink beyond the Labyrinth.

"Sarah," Quillan said, coming back to help her up, "If I don't get back before dark, I'll get in trouble." Sarah looked up at the boy holding her hand, her eyes telling him to go ahead and leave then. "And I'm not leaving without you," he added.

"Quillan," Sarah said, exasperated, "I really don't need this right now." Looking down at her lap, Sarah started shuffling the slips of paper that the Fireys had given her with her thumb.

Quillan saw her thumb move and sat down next to her. "Don't do it, Sarah. I'll be quiet, I promise. Just don't do it," he said in a voice that reminded Sarah of Toby asking her to change the channel on the TV from a scary movie.

"Why not?" Sarah asked.

"Because it's bad," Quillan said, brushing his sandy hair out of his eyes.

"Is it really bad?" Sarah asked quietly, raising a slip to her lips. Quillan whimpered as she tentatively licked the darker side of the tiny piece of paper. The two sat still for a moment, waiting for any sort of reaction, Quillan hardly breathing. "I guess it takes a while," Sarah said standing up.

Quillan stood up, too, and breathed a sigh of relief. Sarah turned to take Quillan's hand, "Shall we continu…whoa!" Sarah shook her head.

Quillan whimpered again, "What is it, Sarah?" He turned around to look at the wall Sarah was looking at. There was…absolutely nothing. "Sarah?"

"Their…like…huge gummy bears." Sarah said, and pulled Quillan behind him.

_"Don't worry, Sarah," Red Gummy Bear said, in an innocent voice. "We won't hurt him."_

_"That's right, Sarah," Green Gummy Bear said._

"Run back to the castle," Sarah whispered to Quillan. "Don't look back and keep running."

"All right, Sarah," the boy whispered, frightened. Then he turned and ran, not because Sarah was seeing six feet tall Gummy Bears, but because there was _nothing there._

_"Don't worry, Sarah," Purple Gummy Bear said, just as sweetly as the others. "We won't hurt you."_

Sarah backed up a couple steps, terrified.

_"Come, Sarah," Red Gummy Bear said._

_"Play with us," Green Gummy Bear said._

Sarah took two steps backwards, turned and ran. She didn't care where she was going; all she knew was that there were huge Gummy Bears chasing her.

_"Get her!" Purple Gummy Bear yelled._

_Sarah looked over her shoulder, and immediately regretted it. The Gummy Bears' eyes were glowing orange. She turned left and ran into a dead-end, except for the door. Shaking the handle almost violently, Sarah realized the door was locked. She turned around and saw the Gummy Bears drawing closer. "Leave me alone," she shouted._

Just as Purple Gummy Bear was about to reach her, the door behind her opened. Hoggle pulled Sarah through, then slammed and locked the door.

Sarah looked around at Hoggle, Sir Didymus and Ludo. "I'm so glad you got here in time," she said, almost crying. "The Gummy Bears were about to…" she paused, staring at the door.

Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus exchanged looks. "What Gummy Bears, Fair Maiden?" Sir Didymus asked calmly.

"Is that door breathing?" Sarah asked, almost to the point of hysterics.

Hoggle turned to his brothers. "Well," he said, "I's think we found her too late. Jareth's gonna kill us."

Sir Didymus turned to Ludo, "My Brother, have you still the crystal that his majesty gave to you?"

"Ludo got crystal," the Yeti said, showing it to his friends. Sarah was slowly backing up from the door. "Send to King?"

"I think that would be wise," Sir Didymus answered. Ludo raised the crystal and blew on it, sending it flying rapidly towards the castle. Hoggle was trying to convince Sarah that the ground was safe to sit on, and not crawling with worms.

Jareth stood in Sarah's room, Cattie and Llewellyn close behind him, staring intently at the new mirror. This one was shaped like a teardrop, showing Sarah sitting with Quillan close by. The Goblin King was trying desperately to figure out exactly what the papers in her hands were, and why she would be licking one.

Just then Quillan came running through the door. He stopped for a second looking around and catching his breath, then saw his parents and ran over to them. "Mommy, Daddy," he said, startling the two Felines. Cattie bent down and picked him up. "Mommy, Daddy," he said again. "Sarah's in trouble."

Jareth twirled around quickly. "What happened?" he asked, startling the already frightened boy.

"Sarah licked a piece of paper that the Bad People gave her, and now she's seeing things. Nummy Squares or something." The small boy said, trying to keep from crying.

"Who are the Bad People, Baby?" Cattie asked, afraid she already knew the answer.

"The Fire Gang," Quillan said quietly, afraid to speak the words.

Before Jareth could begin his angry tirade, a crystal flew in the window and landed at Jareth's feet. He blinked at the crystal a second before looking at Quillan and saying, "You must have run fast, Little One."

"The High King made me half Cheetah," the boy said, proudly.

Jareth rustled the boy's hair before bending down to pick up the crystal. As he raised the crystal to eye-level, everyone in the room suddenly knew exactly where Sarah was. A second later, the Labyrinth stopped moving, a magic much to powerful for the ancient maze controlling it. "Remind me to send a letter of thanks to the High King," Jareth said to Llewellyn before transporting all three Felines, the Fox, the Yeti, the Dwarf, Sarah and himself to the entrance hall of the castle.


	11. Back Around Midnight

**Back Around Midnight**

It took Sarah a minute to realize she was no longer in what she thought was a worm-ridden section of the Labyrinth.

As soon as the girl realized the worms had become stones, she looked up, thrilled to find Jareth and too upset to realize that he was less than amused. She ran over to him, and he took her in his arms, whispering, "Precious, I was so worried about you."

Sarah shook her head, tears running down her face, as she said, "The Gummy Bears lied. They want to hurt me."

Jareth held Sarah at arms length, looking her over, more than a little worried. "What Gummy Bears, Precious?"

"The six-foot-tall Gummy Bears," Sarah said, nearing hysterics again. "Hoggle, Ludo and Didymus saw them. They must have. The Gummy Bears were right there…"

Jareth pulled Sarah close again, stroking her hair and whispering calming words. Everyone was silent for a minute. Quillan was on the brink of tears when Ludo spoke up. "Sarah not sleep in room. Mirrors too scary."

"You're right, My Brother," Sir Didymus said quietly. Turning to Cattie and Llewellyn, he added, "Perhaps there is another place that might be less frightening for the Lady."

The two Felines exchange glances, both mentally trying to find a place that may not scare Sarah. "If we clean out the throne room," Llewellyn suggested, "it may not be all that terrible for Lady Sarah." Cattie nodded.

"Then let's do it," Hoggle said, walking towards the throne room. "That is," he added, turning to face Jareth, "if Your Highness don't mind."

"Do it quickly," Jareth said. "Before she has another…" His words were drowned out as Sarah stepped back, looking over the King's shoulder, and screamed.

"What is it, Precious?" Jareth asked quickly, grabbing Sarah's shoulders gently to calm her. Sarah started struggling violently, making her way over to Quillan.

Jareth tried desperately to hold onto Sarah without hurting her. Ludo stepped forward to help his King restrain the girl.

_"Don't worry, Sarah," Purple Gummy Bear whispered, hovering one large hand over the now crying Feline. "You know how the Fairy Tales go. We don't want to hurt him."_

_"That's right, Sarah," Red Gummy Bear whispered, holding onto her arms._

_"We just want to make him one of us, Sarah," Green Gummy Bear whispered, holding her waist from behind._

Sarah finally wrenched one of her arms out of Jareth's grasp, immediately hitting him and knocking him back. Quickly, Sarah tuned around in Ludo's arms, pushing him off of her fiercely. She ran towards Quillan, almost reaching him, when Llewellyn grabbed her.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Sarah shrieked. "HE'S JUST A BABY!"

_"Lady," Pink Gummy Bear said calmly, walking over and to Quillan. "What do you think we're going to do to him?"_

_"Don't take him," Sarah whispered, stopping her struggle against Blue Gummy Bear. "He didn't do anything."_

_"Where would we take him, My Lady," Blue Gummy Bear asked gently._

_"Far, far away," Sarah whispered, tears spilling from her eyes. Pink Gummy Bear picked up the small Feline. "I can't let you take him from his parents."_

_"But Sarah," Quillan said quietly, wrapping his arms around Pink Gummy Bears neck, "they are my parents."_

_Sarah's eyes widened in terror, and she began struggling against Blue Gummy Bear. "NO, THEY AREN'T," she screamed._

_He pulled her closer, wrapping his arms tightly around her arms and waist. Sarah could hardly move. "Hush, Lady," he whispered. "We're not going to take him." Sarah looked up at Blue Gummy Bear and blinked, thoroughly confused._

"Dearest," Llewellyn said, looking up from Sarah to his wife. "Put Quillan down." Cattie slowly set her son down, but didn't release her hold of him. Llewellyn looked over at his King, earning an approving and encouraging nod. Looking back at Cattie, he said, "Now, My Pet, you," he turned to Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus, " and you three need to go make the throne room safe for Lady Sarah. Quillan, you stay here with His Majesty, Sarah and me."

_Sarah was thoroughly confused when Pink Gummy Bea, sat Quillan down. She was even more confused when Pink Gummy Bear, Green Gummy Bear and the two smaller Gummy Bears went to clean the Throne Room. _

_Blue Gummy Bear looked back down at Sarah. His eyes were no longer glowing orange, and neither were Red Gummy Bear's. "Lady Sarah," Blue Gummy Bear said, loosening his grip slightly, "we're going to let you hold onto Quillan. While you're holding him, you need to sit down with your eyes closed."_

_"We won't do anything to harm either of you," Red Gummy Bear added, walking over and running a hand over her cheek._

Sarah nodded, and Llewellyn released his hold on her. She ran over to Quillan and grabbed his hand. Sarah slid down the wall until she was sitting on the ground, and pulled Quillan onto her lap. She held onto him firmly yet gently. Jareth and Llewellyn sat on either side of the pair.

Taking a deep breath, Sarah decided that all she could do was hold onto Quillan, and closed her eyes.


	12. Nothing More

**Nothing More**

"Sire," Sir Didymus said quietly, running up to the sitting monarch, "the Throne Room is clean."

"We's suggest you keep Sarah away from the hole in the center," Hoggle added, coming up behind Sir Didymus. "It could scare her."

Jareth looked up at the pair and nodded. The two looked uncertainly at Sarah, who still had her eyes closed and held onto a somewhat calmer Quillan than before. Jareth leaned forward and looked over at Llewellyn, not quite sure how to get Sarah to move without scaring her.

"Sarah," the Feline said softly, "open your eyes." Slowly, the girl obeyed. "What do you see?"

Sarah looked up at Hoggle and Sir Didymus, then over at Jareth, down at Quillan and finally up at Llewellyn. "The Gummy Bears are gone," she said softly. Quillan let out an audible sigh of relief.

Jareth stood up, taking one of Sarah's hands in his, and said, "Then come with me. Quickly, before they return." Sarah patted Quillan's back to signal to him to stand, then stood up herself, taking Quillan's hand.

Llewellyn stood up as well, placing a hand on his son's shoulder, and said, "Come on, Quillan. It's past your bed time."

Quillan moved to follow, but Sarah held onto his hand. "Please, Llewellyn," she asked, tears in her eyes, "let him stay with me tonight. I'm afraid the Gummy Bears will take him."

"Sarah," Quillan said calmly, hugging the girl, "the Nummy Squares won't take me."

"Let him go," Jareth said softly, marveling at how close the two had grown in the span of a day. "His parents will protect him."

Sarah clasped onto Quillan, not willing to release her grasp, and looked up at Jareth. "When the Gummy Bears showed up, everyone except Quillan vanished."

Llewellyn traded glances with Jareth before kneeling down next to Sarah. "Nothing will happen to my son," he said softly. "I promise."

Sarah tightened her grip slightly, causing Quillan to hug her tighter as well. "People always break their promises," Sarah whispered, tears spilling down her cheeks. Quillan looked up and, seeing Sarah crying, started to cry as well.

Jareth, too, knelt down next to Sarah. "Precious," he said softly, gently prying Sarah off Quillan, "You have to trust us."

"Fair Maiden," Sir Didymus said, pulling gently on Quillan who had also latched on to Sarah, "I'm sure I speak for My Brothers as well as myself when I say that we will protect him. We won't leave his side." Hoggle nodded his head in agreement, coming forward to help extract Sarah and Quillan from each other.

Hoggle and Sir Didymus pulled on Quillan, while Jareth and Llewellyn pulled on Sarah. Quillan and Sarah hung onto each other, until only one hand was touching, then Quillan shouted, "NO! LET ME STAY WITH HER!"

The boy's yell surprised all who were trying to separate the two, causing everyone to loosen their grips. As they felt the slackening, Sarah and Quillan fought against those holding them, until they were, once again, wrapped in each other's arms.

"Your Majesty," Llewellyn said quietly, "May I speak with you?" Jareth nodded, placing a hand on the Feline's shoulder, and walked out of Sarah and Quillan's hearing range. "Your Majesty," Llewellyn said, glancing over his shoulder, "perhaps it would be wise to let Quillan stay with your Lady until they are both asleep. She seems to do better the closer she is to my son." He turned back to the Goblin King, a little nervous of the response.

Jareth nodded. "You're right, of course," he said, glancing back at his beloved. "Then, again, it's not my decision. Quillan is your son. Only you and your wife may say if he is allowed to stay up late."

Llewellyn nodded. "I'm going to allow it, then," he said, then gave his king a look of slight fear, "though his mother may not be happy about it."

Jareth would have laughed had he not been so completely exhausted. "I wouldn't worry about that."

It wasn't much later that a Feline nanny walked into the Throne Room in search of her charge, only to find Sarah asleep at Jareth's feet, one arm wrapped around Quillan, who had curled up next to the girl and refused to let go of her. Cattie and Llewellyn sat next to each other, to Jareth's right, leaning against each other and also asleep. Sir Didymus and Hoggle had curled up against Ludo. The three brothers slept to Jareth's right. Jareth himself sat on his throne, reading quietly. When the Feline entered, he glanced up with a look that said, "make any noise that wakes them and suffer my wrath."

Smiling quietly, the Feline backed out of the room, giving a small curtsey before silently closing the door and moving on to the next room to search for the missing child.


	13. It's Not Fair

**It's Not Fair**

Jareth woke up the next morning to the feel of eyes watching him. Keeping his eyes closed, he said quietly, "What do you want?" His eyes shot open when he felt someone lay their head down on his lap. Looking down, he smiled to see Sarah awake, bright eyed and with no sign of Gummy Bears anywhere.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I've put everyone through a lot lately, and not one of you deserved it. Especially last night." The girl sat up and looked down at Quillan's sleeping form. She motioned to the boy, "he warned, you know. He told me that the papers we got from the Fire Gang were bad." Sarah looked back up at Jareth, "I want to stop drinking, too. I'll need help, though."

Jareth stretched and looked around to find Sarah and himself to be the only ones awake. He leaned forward and looked intently at Sarah. "It will be hard," he warned, "and it will take some time. I've heard of a spell that will break you of your drinking habit, but I will need to talk with my closest friends."

Sarah rushed forward to hug the King. "Thank you, Jareth," she said, tears threatening to spill. "For everything."

The Goblin King stepped forward to greet the four monarchs who had just arrived, shaking the Pixie King and Wizard Prince's hands and hugging the Dryad Queen and Fairy Princess. Quickly, he introduced Sarah to each one.

The Pixie King was named Keenan. He had long, dark brown hair, which was tied back by twisted cords of bark. His eyes were green and seemed to be laughing constantly, though Sarah could tell he could be serious when need be.

Amaryllis was the Dryad Queen. She wore her long, silver hair in a loose bun. It was held in place by leaves that had been sewn together with what Sarah thought was spider webs.

Galvin was the most cheerful of the bunch. The Wizard Prince wore long golden robes with a silver cord around his middle. Dangling from the cord were many silver pouches of different shapes and sizes. His hair came to his shoulders, and seemed to change color with each movement. His eyes were a brilliant purple.

Of all the four monarchs, Sarah liked Belladonna the best. She had wavy auburn hair that came down to her waist. Her eyes were silver, and she constantly wore a smile. There was something about the Fairy Princess that drew the girl towards her. Sarah hoped she would get to see much more of the Princess as time went on.

The four arriving monarchs and the Goblin King went into Jareth's study to discuss the issues at hand. Sarah sat in the hall with Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus and Cattie. Occasionally Llewellyn and Quillan would stop by.

"Do you think they can help?" Sarah asked quietly after the door to the study had been shut. Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus exchanged glances. Cattie just shrugged and wrapped an arm around the girl.

"My dearest friends," Jareth said, addressing the monarchs seated around his study, "I have called you here because I am in need of your assistance. What I am about tell you I trust will be held in the strictest confidence."

"It must be very serious then," Keenan said. "You have our attention." The other monarchs nodded, and Belladonna's smile faltered slightly.

"As you all know," Jareth continued, "I have developed feelings for a mortal by the name of Sarah Williams."

"Sweet girl," Belladonna said, smiling again.

Jareth looked down for a moment before continuing. "What you may not know is that she is currently going through a difficult time. Her stepmother, Karen Williams, and she fight constantly. Sarah couldn't take it anymore, so she ran away. Her younger brother- the one she had wished away a couple of years ago- Toby," here Galvin nodded, recognizing the name, "sent the dwarf, Hoggle, and his friends to get my help. Since she has been in the Underground, she has discovered both drugs and alcohol."

Jareth paused, sinking into an armchair next to Keenan, his best friend. Belladonna spoke before Jareth could start up again, "She's addicted to them, right?" Jareth nodded. "How can we help her then?"

Jareth and Keenan exchanged amused glances at the Princess's willingness to help. Amaryllis and Galvin laughed.

"What?" Belladonna asked, completely confused.

"You've become attached to Sarah almost as quickly as I did," Jareth responded, still amused. "In answer to your question, though," he added in a more serious tone, Amaryllis and Galvin quickly quieting, "there is a spell I have heard of that may help her. Of course, it will take all five of us to properly cast the spell."

Galvin looked up quickly, eyes slightly widened. "I know the spell you are thinking of. It would be best if we didn't use that spell on your girl, since she is mortal. If it is not cast exactly the way it was intended, the addiction will become worse and worse, until it kills her or she kills herself, whichever comes first."

"We can do it," Amaryllis said quietly. "The five of us have never found a spell we couldn't work together."

Galvin looked over at the Dryad Queen skeptically and said, "My dear Ama, this spell has not been properly cast since the first time it was used for the first time on one of the Ancients of the Aboveground."

The room sat was silent for a minute until the oldest of the five monarchs spoke up. "Galvin," Keenan asked quietly and seriously, "do you know of another method we could use? One not so dangerous?"

Galvin thought for a moment, before smiling and looking at Jareth, "What is the traditional mortal method?"

"We're not doing that," Jareth said with a sigh, raising his hand to rub his forehead. "I can only stand one Belladonna, thank you very much."

The other monarchs, except for the mentioned Princess, laughed. "I'm not that bad," Belladonna said mock indignantly.

"There is one spell," Amaryllis said. "The spell will give take three weeks to get the addiction out of her system."

"Let's do that, then," Belladonna said cheerfully.

Amaryllis looked over at Jareth and said, "I warn you, however, she will not be pleasant to be around. And you should probably keep sharp and heavy objects away from her during those weeks. In fact, if you decide we should use this spell, then we should make a Safe Room for her and keep her in there."

"Easier said then done," Jareth said, lowering his hand. He looked over at Galvin. "Any suggestions?"

The Wizard Prince shook his head. "I'm all out of ideas." Jareth sighed.

"The answer is simple, Jareth," the Pixie King said, smiling slightly. "You must truly be worried about the girl to not have seen it."

Jareth smiled at the older Fae, "Don't tease."

Keenan laughed. "As I said, the answer is simple," Keenan responded, standing. "We cast the spell Amaryllis," he motioned to the Dryad Queen, "has suggested, _only after_ we cast a spell so the girl will not be able to leave the room until the addiction has been released from her system."

The room was silent for a moment, all eyes watching Jareth as he sat, staring off into space, his mind working frantically. "That just might work." He turned to the Pixie King again. "You are a genius my friend."

"I know," he smirked. "Now let's get to work on those spells."


	14. Strangers Till Now

**Strangers Till Now**

Sarah sat against the wall opposite Jareth's study, head leaning against Llewellyn's shoulder, barely awake. After nightfall, Llewellyn and Quillan had come to send the others to bed, though Sarah had refused to move. Exhausted, Cattie, Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus had gone off to bed already.

Quillan sat in Llewellyn's lap. He had been asleep for nearly an hour already.

Llewellyn himself was beginning to feel the edges of sleep pulling on him, when Sarah asked a rather curious question. "Llewellyn, do you love Cattie?"

"She's my dearest friend," he answered, wrapping his arm around Sarah and pulling her closer.

"But you don't love her?" Sarah asked, glancing down at the sleeping boy. Like this, he really reminded her of Toby, and how much she truly missed him. "Not like…like…"

"Like His Majesty loves you?" Llewellyn asked, looking down at Sarah, the girl looking back up at him. "No. I never have. Most Felines and Canines don't truly love their spouses."

Sarah sat up, confused, "Why not?"

Llewellyn smiled at the girl, "You still have a lot to learn about the Underground." He pulled her back against him. "Felines and Canines have arranged marriages by the High King himself. You can petition to marry who you want, though."

"Why are they arranged?" Sarah asked, getting comfortable again.

"Because Feline and Canines are servants." Llewellyn said simply.

Still thoroughly confused, Sarah decided to try again. "Do you love anyone?"

Llewellyn smiled, looking down at his son. "I'm beginning to. And before you ask, no I will not tell you who. I'm married, and I have a son. Not to mention that the lady I have feelings for is very important, yet still a child in many ways."

"Oh," Sarah said. She paused a moment before continuing, "How do you know when your in love?" Llewellyn laughed quietly. "What?" she asked, sitting up again.

"Sarah, Sarah, Sarah," he said, once again, pulling her back into place. "Are you falling in love?"

Sarah blushed and looked away. "I think so, but how do you know when you love someone?" She turned back to the Feline, now completely serious. "What's it feel like for you?"

Llewellyn smiled down at Sarah. "It's an amazing feeling. When you're in love, everything seems brighter. You feel lighter yourself and when the person you're in love with smiles at you or touches you, it's all you can do to keep from grinning madly. You know you're in love when you see the person and the first thought that comes to your head is 'I love you'."

"Oh, wow," Sarah whispered, all but staring at the Feline.

"I couldn't have put it better myself." Sarah and Llewellyn turned quickly towards the voice, Llewellyn accidentally waking Quillan in the process. Jareth and the other monarchs stood at the door to his study, watching the three on the floor. Belladonna was silently giggling. "Sarah, darling," Jareth said, "Why don't we get you to bed? Quillan, you as well. Llewellyn will you please show these Ladies and Gentlemen to their rooms."

Later, as Llewellyn helped Jareth to get ready for bed, the King turned to the Feline and asked, "So, who were you talking with Sarah about?"

Llewellyn smiled from where he stood, turning down the sheets on Jareth's bed. "Let's just say, though I may not have the depth you do, I understand the feelings you have for Lady Sarah."


	15. Should You Need Us

**Should You Need Us**

The following morning, just after breakfast, found Sarah in Jareth's study, along with Jareth, the visiting monarchs, Cattie and Llewellyn. Belladonna sat on one side of Sarah, holding her hand, and Cattie on the other, with an arm wrapped around Sarah's shoulders.

After a few moments of collecting his, and some of his friend's, thoughts, Jareth spoke. "Sarah," he said, "After much discussion, we have decided on a couple of spells to help you overcome your addictions." He faltered, glancing to Keenan for help.

The Pixie King, as always, came to his best friend's rescue. "My Lady," he said, turning to face Sarah. "There are two spells we will cast. You must keep an open mind while we explain these to you," he said.

"And you have to trust us," Belladonna added, giving Sarah's hand a squeeze. Sarah nodded, too nervous to do anything else.

Keenan looked over to Amaryllis. "One spell we will be casting," the Dryad Queen explained, "will take three weeks to finish. This spell will slowly cleanse you of your drug and alcohol addictions. It will make you feel…weird. You will be irritable and you will probably try to convince the people closest to you that they should you bring you either the drugs or alcohol." She looked back at Keenan.

"The second spell," the Pixie King continued, "will keep you inside a designated room, for your own good. The doors will not unlock and the tapestries over the windows move only enough to allow air in. Once you are inside, there will be no escaping the room." Keenan looked towards Jareth, silently asking if he was ready to take over.

The Goblin King nodded slightly, turning to Sarah, and said, "Your meals will be served to you in this room, and your friends, Cattie, Llewellyn and I will spend time with you at various intervals."

"I can finally teach you some Underground card games," Cattie said, and Sarah smiled at her gratefully.

"The last week will be the hardest," Galvin said. "I don't know about the others, but I will return that week to help." He looked over at Jareth. "You're going to need it."

"I'll come too," Belladonna said excitedly, standing up. Looking at Sarah she added, "I've grown very attached to you in the little time I've known you. I want to help in any way possible."

"That seems to happen a lot," Jareth said, glancing at Llewellyn. Keenan saw the exchanged glance between king and servant, and smiled knowingly.

"Let's all come back," Amaryllis said. "It's been a while since we've spent much time together."

"If that's all right with you," Keenan said, looking towards Jareth.

"I have a feeling that your help in the last week will be greatly appreciated," the Goblin King said gratefully.

"Well," Galvin said, standing. ", I suggest the we cast these spells before the day gets too late."

Sarah sat in the hall across from the room the five monarchs were setting up for her, Llewellyn next to her. Even from here, she could feel the different magics mixing together.

She looked over at Llewellyn and asked quietly, "Where'd Cattie go?"

He smiled at her and said, "Many of our closest friends are servants of His Majesty's friends. She has gone to visit with them."

"Why didn't you go?" Sarah asked, pulling her legs up to her chest and running a hand through her hair.

"I'd rather be with you right now," the Feline said, earning a smile from Sarah.

After a few moments, Sarah asked, "Will I be able to see Quillan?"

Llewellyn smiled, "When you're not in a bad mood, I'll take Quillan in to see you. Now I have a question for you, My Lady. Why are you so close to him already?"

Sarah smiled. "He reminds me of my brother," she answered.

"You miss Toby greatly, don't you?" Llewellyn asked, brushing a lock hair out of Sarah's face. She nodded. "Hoggle tells me that he asks about you."

Sarah was about to respond when the door opened and Belladonna bounced out. "Come on, Sarah," the Fairy Princess said, grabbing her hands and pulling her up. "We're ready for you. Before we go in, though, is here anything you want to do?" Sarah shook her head, bewildered by the princess's energy. "Then come on," Belladonna said, and then turned to Llewellyn. "Jareth says you can come, too, if you want."

The energetic princess pulled Sarah into the room, and Llewellyn followed. The room was a lot like Sarah's, except that things were held in place by magic so the girl couldn't hurt herself. Also, there were no mirrors.

As Sarah looked around the room, Jareth conjured a crystal. Each of the monarchs touched it in turn, adding their magic to it. When Belladonna, the youngest of the monarchs and, therefore, the last to touch the crystal, added her magic, the crystal held translucent oak leaves, willow leaves, flowers and white smoke, each object symbolizing the magic of a different monarch.

Holding it up to the light, Jareth said softly, "Sarah." The girl turned around to look at him. Hurling the crystal at her, he said, "Catch!"

The crystal hit Sarah in the chest, surprisingly not hurting, yet knocking the wind out of her. Sarah felt the familiar Goblin magic as well as the Pixie, Dryad, Wizard and Fairy magics course through her veins. As the force of the magic made Sarah black out, she fell backwards and would have hit the floor, had Llewellyn not been there to catch her.


	16. It's Further Than You Think

**It's Further Than You Think**

The next two weeks passed by uneventfully. That is, as uneventfully as was to be expected. Every meal Cattie served got thrown back at her. Jareth had almost gotten hit in the face five separates times. Llewellyn almost got his decapitated when he forgot and let Sarah have a knife. Still, two weeks passed by as uneventfully as was to be expected.

It was with great relief that the entire kingdom watched four carriages pull up to The Castle Beyond The Goblin City. Jareth immediately rushed forward and pulled each arriving monarch into a tight hug, surprising Belladonna into silence instead of her usual laughter upon arrival.

It was Galvin who first commented on Jareth's appearance. In typical Wizard fashion he said, "Jareth, my friend, you look like death itself."

Keenan and Amaryllis shot the Wizard Prince disapproving glances, Belladonna giggled, and Jareth smiled and said, "It's been hell here."

The next week was, indeed, the hardest. At the end of the week, everyone was exhausted. Especially Hoggle and Sir Didymus, who had recently been used as darts, thrown at the target that was Ludo.

On the night the doors unlocked for Sarah, the entire kingdom was asleep, save for Jareth and the four visiting monarchs. It was out in the gardens, underneath a clear sky, that Sarah found her royal friends.

Keenan and Jareth walking in a friendly debate about the regulation of vials for potions, the other three monarchs listening intently.

Belladonna, the youngest and easiest to be distracted, started looking around. As her eyes fell on the newly released girl, her eyes widened and she almost shouted, "Sarah!"

The others whipped around to see the girl standing there, circles under her eyes. Jareth took a couple of slow steps forward, and Sarah rushed to him. Wrapping their arms around each other, the couple fell to their knees.

"It's late," Keenan said. "I think I'll retire."

"As will we," Amaryllis said, grabbing the Prince and Princess on either side of her and dragging them into the castle.

"Sarah," Jareth said quietly, hands holding her face and thumbs caressing her tear-stained cheeks, " I love you."

"I love you, too," Sarah whispered, admitting for the first time what she had known since she was fifteen.

"Marry me, Sarah," Jareth whispered, gently kissing her forehead.

Sarah stood up slowly, pulling Jareth up, as well. "Ask me in the morning," Sarah said, placing a hand on Jareth's cheek. Things always look different in the daylight."


	17. You Have No Power Over Me

**You Have No Power Over Me**

The next morning, as the Goblin Kingdom began to wake and begin their busy days, Jareth laid next Sarah, watching the girl sleep. The past three weeks _had_ been hell, but Sarah had never asked to be released from the spells that held her. For that, Jareth loved her all the more, and knew that she would indeed make a good Goblin Queen.

Sarah's eyes fluttered open. She stretched sleepily and smiled. "Good morning, Jareth," she said quietly.

"Good morning, Precious," he said, brushing a stray hair out of Sarah's eyes. "It's morning," he added. Sarah looked confused. "It's daylight," he whispered. "Can we talk about marriage now?"

Sarah sat up, yawning and nodding. "All right," she said.

Jareth sat up happily, catching the yawn from Sarah. Wrapping his arm around the girl he asked, "Sarah, my love, will you marry me?"

Sarah smiled and said, "All right. But I want to see my family first."

"Of course," Jareth said. "We can go see them today."

"Why so quickly?" Sarah asked.

Jareth stood up and walked over to his desk. "Because," he said, opening the top drawer and pulling out a small box, "I said so." He sat down next Sarah, opening the box for her to see. Inside, set in a velvet-like cushion, there was a ring with a large stone. The stone might have been a diamond, except that it change color with every moment and every thought Sarah had. "Besides," Jareth added, taking the ring out of the box and slipping it on Sarah's finger, "I've waited over two years for you. I'm not going to give you a chance to back out now."

Sarah stood at the front door to the Williams' house., Jareth next to her in mortal clothing. Keenan and Galvin had shrunk themselves and were hidden on Jareth, Amaryllis and Belladonna on Sarah. The girl reached out to open the door, and drew her hand back quickly. "Maybe this isn't such a good idea," she said. "Let's just…"

"You can do it, Sarah," Belladonna said into her ear. "We're all here for you. And your friends Underground are cheering for you."

"Thanks," Sarah said, not sure whether she meant it or not. Sarah opened the door and stepped inside, Jareth following.

The first thing Sarah noticed was how quiet the house was. The silence was almost deafening. At first, the girl thought the house was empty. Until she heard a voice from the kitchen. "Come on," Karen said loudly. "Cheer up. We were going to be rid of her in a year anyways."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "At least _she_ hasn't changed," the girl whispered to Jareth.

Suddenly, there came a loud stomping down the upstairs hall, earning a smile from Sarah. As the cause of the stomping got to the top of the stairs, he looked down into the living room and shouted, "Sarah! You here!" Toby ran down the stairs to greet his sister.

"Toby!" Sarah said quietly, rushing forward to pick up her brother. In her haste, the girl almost forgot about her tiny stowaways, remembering just in time to keep from crushing Amaryllis.

"What are _you _doing here?" came Karen's voice form the door to the kitchen.

Sarah turned towards the kitchen, thinking she would be facing her stepmother. What she saw, however, quickly silenced the girl. Not until did her stepmother and father stand there, but next to them stood Sarah's mother.

"Mommy," Sarah said quietly, hardly daring to believe that the actress was back. Sandra practically ran to her daughter. Amaryllis barely had time to move next to Belladonna.

Karen turned her accusing eyes on Jareth. "And who are _you_?" she asked, causing all the stowaways to wince from the venom in her words.

"Mom," Sarah said, directing Karen's anger at her instead of Jareth, "Mommy, Daddy," Sarah addressed each of her parents, "this is Jareth."

"He really nice," Toby said, spotting Amaryllis and Belladonna. He waved slightly, and the Queen and Princess waved back.

"How does Toby know this...pedophile?" Karen asked accusingly.

Sarah set Toby down and looked over at Jareth, "Darling, would you keep an eye on Toby? I have some explaining to do." Jareth nodded and took Toby out of hearing range."

"It'll be fine," Amaryllis said to the nervous girl.

"Ok," Sarah said, more to the Queen than her parents. "Two years ago, I wished Toby away to the Goblin King. I had to solve a Labyrinth to get him back. For some reason, Toby remembers it. When I ran away, he sent Hoggle, a dwarf friend of ours, to have Jareth, the Goblin King take me Underground where I would be safe. While I was there, I experimented with drugs and alcohol, but I'm over that. Jareth helped me get over that. Now, we want to get married," Sarah said rather quickly, hoping to confuse her parents.

"Yeah," Belladonna said, patting Sarah's ear. "Nice going."

It took her parents a few moments to understand what Sarah said. When they did, however, Karen got, if possible, even more angry, and Sandra rushed forward to congratulate her daughter.

"Sandra!" Karen said, incredulously, "She wished my son away."

"She got him back," Sandra said, and then turned back to her daughter.

"Richard!" Karen yelled at her husband, who was standing next to her.

"Sandra," Richard said. "Sarah." Both mother and daughter turned to face him. "I can't allow my son to be put in any danger." Everyone turned o face him, listening intently. "Sarah, I don't want to hear or see from you again."

Sarah sat in between Cattie and Llewellyn, crying. Both Felines were trying desperately to calm her down. All three looked up as the door slammed open. Jareth walked in, followed closely by Keenan, Amaryllis and Galvin.

"Don't worry, honey," the Dryad Queen said, walking over to Sarah and cupping her chin gently. "Everything will be all right."

Sarah nodded and hugged the Fae. "Where's Bella?" she asked.

"She'll be here soon," Galvin said.

"What did you two do?" Jareth asked, exasperated.

"Nothing much," Belladonna said from the door. Sandra stood next her. Behind her was Ludo, in front Hoggle, Sir Didymus and Quillan. In her arms, she carried a small child, wrapped in blankets and such so that one could not even tell if the child were male or female.

Quillan looked up at the Princess, who nodded, and ran over to Sarah. He crawled up into his father's lap, and asked the girl, "Can I play with Toby?"

Sarah looked down at him sadly and said through her tears, "If I had any right to him, I would say you could."

"Sarah," Belladonna said giggling again. "You have _every_ right to him." Sarah looked at the Princess, deeply confused.

Belladonna put the child down. Still completely wrapped up, it walked over to Sarah. Pulling the blanket back slightly, Toby peeked his head out and said, "Can I play with Quillan?"

"How…" Sarah started, but couldn't get any further. She swept the small boy up, tears changing to tears of happiness.

"With a Changeling," Galvin answered. "From my country."

"Thank you," Sarah whispered through her tears, still holding onto her brother. "All of you."


	18. A Love That Will Last

**A Love That Will Last**

It wasn't three months after Sandra and Toby's arrival Underground that Sarah stood in her room, Cattie, Sandra, Amaryllis and Belladonna surrounding her.

Amaryllis was giving Sarah last minute reminders on Underground marriages. Cattie was applying finishing touches to the girl's make-up. Sandra was fixing Sarah's veil to her head. Belladonna tried her best to keep Sarah calm, while checking to makes sure the other women were also prepared.

It was when Sarah thought she couldn't take anymore that there came a knock at the door. Cattie opened the door to find Llewellyn, dressed in formal garb. He bowed and said, "Ladies, five minutes."

Sarah entered the gardens smiling, hoping her fear was not apparent, and everyone stood. Jareth watched her walk towards him and knew that this was where she belonged, and where he belonged. With each other.

As Sarah reached the place where Jareth stood, he held out his arm to her. The Wise Man, whom Sarah had encountered in journey through the Labyrinth, smiled and asked those assembled, "Who here gives away this Mortal Woman, Sarah Williams?"

Sandra stood up. "As the Mother of this Mortal Woman," she said, remembering the words Amaryllis had given to her, "I give Sarah Williams to Jareth, King of the Goblins. May they live forever in happiness. Blessed be."

"Blessed be," the guests said.

Sandra sat back down. The Wise Man's hat spoke this time, "And who here gives away this Fae, Sarah Williams of the Aboveground?"

Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus all stood up. "As the first Underground friend o' this Lady, I's do give Sarah Williams of the Aboveground to Jareth, King of the Goblins," Hoggle said respectfully.

"As the protector of this Lady and one of her guides," Sir Didymus said nobly, "I give Sarah Williams of the Aboveground to Jareth, King of the Goblins."

"Sarah and Ludo friends," Ludo said. Amaryllis had given him a simplified form of the usual words. "Sarah be with King."

"May they live forever in happiness," Hoggle and Sir Didymus said together.

"Bless be," Ludo finished. The three brothers sat down.

"Then," the Wise Man continued, "step forward, Mortal Woman, Sarah Williams of the Aboveground, and Jareth, King of the Goblins, and pledge your love for each other."

Sarah and Jareth stepped forward, Sarah handing her golden bouquet to Belladonna, her maid of honor, and holding each Sarah's hands, Jareth said, "Sarah Williams, as your King and Husband, I pledge to love, honor and protect you, forever and always, until the world falls down and beyond."

Sarah took a deep breath and a moment to find her voice. "Jareth, King of the Goblins, as your Queen and Wife, I pledge to love, honor and serve you, forever and always, until the world falls down and beyond."

"Have you the rings?" the Wise Man's hat asked.

Quillan and Toby stepped up from behind Jareth and Sarah, Toby next to Sarah and Quillan next to Jareth, holding out the silver pillows that the golden rings sat on.

"Then," the Wise Man said, "Jareth place the ring on Sarah's finger and repeat these words, 'With this ring, I thee wed'."

Jareth did as he was told, and the Wise Man turned to Sarah. "Sarah Williams," the Wise Man's hat said, "place the ring on Jareth's finger and repeat these words, 'With this ring, I thee wed'."

Sarah, too, did as instructed. As the Wise Man said his next words, Jareth held on almost desperately. "If the be anyone here with reason that these two she not be wed, let them speak now, or forever hold their peace."

A few seconds of silence passed and Jareth relaxed, earning amused glances from the Pixie King and Dryad Queen. "Then," the Wise Man and his hat said together, "I present to you, Jareth and Sarah, King and Queen of the Goblins."

Some say the cheer that followed could be heard in every kingdom through out the Underground. Others say the sound that was heard was the sound of the High King rejoicing over his only son's marriage. Whatever the noise was, it was only to be rivaled one other time.

As seemed to be the case whenever anything important happened, King Keenan of the Pixies, Queen Amaryllis of the Dryads, King Jareth and Queen Sarah of the Goblins, and King Galvin and Queen Belladonna of the Wizards stood in a circle in the center of the Labyrinth, their magics mixing together.

The Aboveground was loosing their belief in the Underground races. The Underground was falling apart. The only hope lay in the center of the circle of monarchs, rising by magic to Aboveground. As the spell finished, the monarchs who had cast it turned to living statues, silently waiting for a time when they were remembered.

Ryuichi Shindou ran through a park in Japan, desperately trying to reach his school before the tardy bell rang. As he rounded the corner, Ryuichi tripped over a large, ancient book. Opening the book, Ryuichi began to read the list of spells.

Charlotte Cavadica sat down under her favorite tree in the middle of England's countryside. Looking up at the clear sky, she sighed. This was always her favorite time of the year.

Charlotte looked down towards her lap, when something caught her eye. A short distance away, gleaming in the sunlight, sat a small snowglobe with a Labyrinth inside. Charlotte stared, watching the tiny figures move about and the walls move to confuse them.

Tatiana laughed, picking up her small daughter. The home she had in South Africa may not have been much, but it was theirs.

Tatiana watched as her small son waddled towards her, carrying a small tube filled with shining specks. Taking the tube from the boy, Tatiana emptied some into her hand to inspect it.

Holding the specks in her hand, Tatiana once again wished for what she wanted more than anything. She blinked and opened her eyes, to find her home a bit more grand. A phone call informed the woman that she could now afford to make ends meet.

Ramon ran through the rainforest in Brazil, chasing his friends. He tripped over a large tree root, and that's when saw them. Small wooden carvings of five or six people, mostly girls, with wings. Ramon called out to his friends, and the rest the day was spent pretending they had wings and were as small as flowers. When night came, Ramon and his friends each took one of the carvings home.

Danny sighed, looking up at he clock in her parent's house near Boston. Eight thirty. Good. She could now put her bratty two year old sister to bed.

Danny looked around for anything to make the girl stop crying. She picked up a small, red leather-bound book with gold lettering that she had never noticed before. She thumbed through it quickly then went back to her sister's room.

Danny sat down next to her sister's bed and said, "Do you want a story?" The two-year-old nodded.

"All right," Danny said, opening the book. She turned to the first page and read aloud, "Once upon a time there was beautiful young girl who's step mother always made her stay home with the baby..."


End file.
